General Contractor - Finish Carpenter - Wood Experience

O.P. needs exactly what he asked for, a general contractor with carpentry subs, although the more preferable terms would be woodworkers and cabinetmakers (he said he needs a kitchen as well).

You need a licensed GC to pull permits, carry insurance, manage the project and other subcontractors such as plumbers and electricians for his kitchen.
You will need other tradespeople as well such as plasterers, etc. A woodworker is also most certainly not going to do any demo. and you certainly wouldn’t want to pay him to anyway, hence the need for the GC.

I don’t know exactly how things got this way with “glorified handymen” calling themselves contractors, but the closing of many vocational and apprenticeship programs in the past probably has had something to do with it.

Here is the DCA exam guide, the city department that licenses contractors. They only want to ascertain that you can function as a contractor, IE one that is able to write contracts, there is not any test of skills that you are capable to perform any work.

https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/dca/downloads/pdf/busine sses/Home-Improvement-Business-Exam-Guide.pdf

There are plenty of excellent tradespeople out there, quality work is actually quite routine on higher end jobs. Some of the things I saw discussed here like custom molding profiles, level 5 finish, etc. are run of the mill everyday work.
I am not sure why finding tradespeople would be difficult unless there are budget constraints. (The work as you described will require a healthy budget.)

Word of mouth and seeing other peoples work is probably the best way to go. We never advertise and are always busy.
I hire other general contractors to work on my properties upstate and have always found them by asking around or seeing someone doing good work. It is interesting being the client for a change though.

If you want to discuss this in more detail send me an email to Larconst@aol.com and I will get back to you.

@restoration contractor: this may have changed as there has been tightening of the laws in the city, but legally it was, as late as 15 years ago, possible for a homeowner to GC a job on his/her property. i watched a guy to it, he pulled the permits for gas and electric and when he went the DOB to do so they gave him push back but he pulled some city pamphlets out that stated he could pull the permits and he got them (the lic. trades had to sign off). i still recall him complaining about the stupidity of the of the people at the DOB for not knowing what was written in their own pamphlets. the job did not require moving walls or changing access, so no architect was involved but it included moving cabinets and plumbing fixtures a few feet and electric and he had the trades do the work and had them sign off on them to close it. This was all done in a coop with the knowledge and consent of the building (and we know how coops are about making unit owners hire the right people). LEGALLY he did not need a GC and since he himself was a HIC (as a carpenter) he fel t comfortable directing the trades and ensuring they were doing things to standard. again, this may have changed.

in so far as OP is concerned, because this kind of work is probably not his thing, i would say yes, he NEEDs a GC. but it still might not be a legal requirement. if he is demoing a wall, that might cross the threshold (and load bearing would need an architect) but if he is hanging cabinets and maybe moving some electric and a plumbing fixture, it may be LEGAL for him to do this himself (i do not mean the physical work, i mean contracting it). if this were in my house, i would GC it myself (and by that, i don’t mean i would pick up and tools or swing a hammer; we did our bathroom and i stayed away from the people doing the work), hiring the properly licensed trades and checking insurance and letting the licensed trades know they will have to sign off and close their portion of the work with the DOB..

as late as three years ago, i consulted with an engineer about a steel deck for the back of my house. we did not move forward, but that job would have had to have been filed and would have meant moving egress and electric and heating pipes. the engineer was going to draw and file and i was going to GC and build (myself) to his drawings with the trades doing their bit and signing off and the engineer closing the job and being on hand for the final inspection. all legal.

you do point out that HIC’s are not tested on anything about what they are doing in the field. you are correct. but what kind of test do GC’s have to take? i really don’t know myself, so i am not being a smart ass by asking. i know they have to carry insurance specific to what they do (GC; in most jurisdictions GC is an insurance term). i think i also read that they have to have cash on hand. but do they take a test to check their knowledge? we like to think they would yes, but i don’t know. (i will look later today; i read about this in NYC years ago and decided it was not worth the trouble for what i do which is limited).

if lack of testing is a joke, here is another joke about this city. if you go to any other jurisdiction, they require licensed HIC contractors to carry liability insurance and the jurisdiction requires they be listed as additionally insured. if NYC required that HIC’s carry liability i bet they would scare off so many people who just are not committed to what they are doing and could not bother to lay out a few grand for insrance. they could really stop this nonsense that the OP is facing if they just put their foot down a little and made it harder for some of these people to operate.

all this brings up something else that can help OP: before you even invite someone to your house, ask if they have insurance. if they do not, do not talk to them; this will weed out a lot of miscreants. also, since i suspect you will want a GC, ask if they carry GC insurance (read about what a General Contractor is and check the DOB website; i will later to be sure what i am saying here is true and if it is not, i will come back on here and correct myself) and even ask who the policy is written by and see if that company writes GC insurance and when you meet him, as to see his certificate and read it. see what his limits are; on top of carrying specific insurance, his limits will be higher than an HIC’s. like 5 or 10 mill. and finally, the city probably maintains a list of licensed GC’s on the web. i know they maintain a list of HIC’s (i am on it). Before you invite contractors over, ask if they are a licensed GC, if they say they are, look them up on the DOB site. if they do not appear, call them and ask what name they hold the license in (it could be under their own name or the business or a trade name). if they cannot give you an answer put the phone down. keep in mind, people who do this day in and day out learn how to sidestep these people; i don’t wast a minute talking to them.

and op, be aware of another thing; a lot of people work under other people’s licenses. i would never let anyone use any of my licenses, but be aware, it happens a lot among bottom feeders. so check out that people are who they say they are.

so i took a look on the DOB website this evening. basically, anyone who has a pulse, 25k in the bank for at least 3 months, and gets the full whack of insurance, including disability, can be a GC. no skills test and not even a test such as those that the HIC takes. It appears the only added advantage to having a GC is that the GC can hire the subs, pay them and if a sub makes it on the site without insurance, he is responsible. oh, one other thing, a GC’s insurance has to list the city as additional insured and if that insurance gets canceled, it raises a flag. same background check as an HIC and proof of address.. Does not really offer the homeowner a lot over and above and HIC and there is no guarantee that the GC has any particular skill. if someone has a knack for spotting talent and side stepping bs and can manage money, they can become a successful GC. a 90 year old woman with no trade experience could become a GC on Monday afternoon if she wished.

GC is required to build one, two and three family homes. its all on the DOB website.

here is so mething for the OP to consider: most GC’s are carpenters. that is where they come from and it makes sense. they are on the job to frame the walls and are there when the finish is put on the walls which means it makes more sense for them to run the job and monitor the work of the plumber and electrician and tile or floor guys. often on a job, the GC’s own crew are hanging the cabinets and installing trim. and they will paint.

Stevecym, how are you? (I’m Bill, the guy who bought all those big iron lights from you!)

I am sure we could discuss all of this for hours, but here are a few points;

I took a quick look, it does not seem like homeowners can do much anymore;

https://www1.nyc.gov/site/buildings/homeowner/project-requirements-owner-residential.page

While the OP may not need a contractor to legally do the work, it seems he needs one to actually build it. If he is in a co-op or condo however they will require a licensed, insured contractor.

As far as the H.I.C. exam, here is the correct link, these are not sure why the other did not work. I did not clarify, but the questions given on the exam are taken directly from the material in the exam guide and NOTHING else! If you read the guide you will pass.

https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/dca/downloads/pdf/businesses/Home-Improvement-Business-Exam-Guide.pdf

There is very little opportunity space wise (or desire on my part) to build 1-3 family homes from scratch so the DOB GC registration really is pointless. Most construction work is residentia l renovation, or commercial work in residential buildings.
Most commercial work does not require any contractor licensing.

Homeowners should definitely check on the contractors insurance and can ask to see a sample certificate.
For contractors, I made the mistake of sending a certificate made out to an owner years ago before the contract was signed, long story, but I learned not to do that again.

hey bill, nice seeing you on here. i was not aware you posted here. you should stop by and see me sometime. i have been clearing my rental space out post covid and have been getting rid of things.

so i finally read the link you had posted to the homeowners reference with the city – how to proceed with projects and what they can do and can’t do. basically, what that says is what i have been saying all along – that a homeowner can do interior work so long as they do not touch a load bearing (or fire containment) wall and do not move fixtures. a licensed plumber, which a homeowner can hire without a GC, can move fixtures up to 10′ without pulling a permit (this is a more permissive rule than i was stating; i thought a permit was needed). i am not sure about the electric but years ago i had heard that even changing outlets needed a permit and as a matter of course, a licensed elec is needed to touch any fixture or outlet. this is pretty much where this has sat for something like twenty years now. i don’t think they are making changes to what we can do, only enforcing the rules in place (gas lines; in light of a few deaths, you touch one of those and they prosecute).

you keep putting forth the HIC test without mentioning that a GC takes NO test (this is a joke on the city, but as a business owner, i get it; the insurance a GC has to carry pretty much regulates them and squeezes the incompetent people out).

we still do not know the full extent of the OP’s work. no mention of moving walls. just mention of a lot of woodwork that a homeowner (and that means HIC who is a woodworker) could do with no permits. probably a lot of painting on top of that. usually with those jobs comes minor electric or adding outlets around cabinets – but if that were the case, if I were the OP, i would contact an electrician and see what he says about filing. the same with a plumber. those trades are licensed pros and us homeowners should be able to trust what they are saying (and that is why we use licensed people; they put their license on the line). If OP is talking about a full gut on this apt, i would agree that he or she needs a GC.

I run into a lot of GC’s while working and i am not sure if that is what you are, but most GC’s i see are on full guts where all of the trades are doing things that had to be filed. of course this means walls have been moved and removed, headers put in, egress changed, new systems such as HVAC are being installed. and they are reading off plans drawn and filed by architect and engineers. Unless OP has that kind of job, i can imagine that a lot of GC’s might not want to get involved; it may be too downmarket for them to cover their insurance overhead. perhaps that is why the OP is having trouble finding people. i have the name of a couple of good GC’s but have held them back as i think the job might be too small. the successful GC’s in Brooklyn are serious construction managers.

if the OP wished to come on here and describe more about the job, it might become clearer to some of us who and what is needed. also, i have met Bill posting has restoration contractor and know he works in the city, with old buildings and is well involved with these kind of projects; he put his hat in the ring and i would talk to him. i am going to learn more about what he does as i have people asking about jobs larger than what i am willing to do all the time.